“Victims can be left with lifelong injuries and scars and some are profoundly impacted by their injuries.

“These attacks are shocking, and shocking is what they should continue to be.

“We want to avoid these attacks ever becoming a regular occurrence on our streets in Greater Manchester, and we will treat reports of attacks of this nature with the same utmost seriousness as someone using a knife or a gun.

“We are committed to bringing to justice anyone who brings an item onto our streets that can devastate lives like corrosive substances can.”

In August last year, a man was rushed to hospital after a gang of robbers hurled a liquid, which was feared to be acid, in his face.

He suffered injuries to his eyes and face as he walked along a pathway in Silverdale Country Park, Pendlebury, Salford.

Chief Superintendent Mary Doyle (Image: Vincent Cole)

Then, in October, two nightclub doormen were taken to hospital suffering from burns after a man armed with a knife threw acid at them in Salford.

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She represented two of the victims injured in a high-profile acid attack carried out by Arthur Collins, the ex-boyfriend of TOWIE star Ferne McCann.

Collins was locked up for 20 years after injuring 14 people in the attack at London’s Mangle nightclub in April 2017.

She said: “Acid attacks are on the rise. It’s happening on the streets of Manchester. It’s easy to buy and the impact is devastating.

“In the case of Collins, he used the acid indiscriminately. The victims wanted a life sentence passed. There are not enough of those being passed. The victims live with the effects for their rest of their lives. You have beautiful young people who are disfigured. A lot of people are caught in the cross fire. We need to face up to the fact that acid is the new weapon on the streets.

“You don’t need a licence to buy it. We could ban cash sales so it is easier to trace who buys it, and ban the sale of it to under 18s. We need to impose tougher sentences for people who use it in attacks.”